Method of making shoes



Nov. 29, 1938. A. E. LINDBLAD I -x METHOD OF MAKING SHOES Filed March22, 1955 '2 Sheets-Sheet 1 NOV. 29, 1938. LHNDBLAD 2,138,109

METHOD OF MAKING SHOES Filed March 22, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 2WIiIIIIIIIIIIIIII/IA Patented Nov. 29, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICEMETHOD OF MAKING SHOES Application March 22, 1935, Serial No. 12,466

6 Claims.

plied to the last. In order to overcome certain disadvantages of thatpractice it has been proposed to skeletonize the insole after it hasbeen assembled with the upper on the last and after the margin of theupper has been secured in overlasted position upon the insole. Incarrying out the method just referred to it was proposed to employ aninsole having a lip or rib spaced from its edge a suitable distance toprovide a wide feather, to last the upper with cement to the feather andfasten it by staples to the lip so as to hold it temporarily inplace, totrim the lip and portion of the upper attached thereto flush with thebottom of the central portion of the insole and, after the trimming ofthe upper had been accomplished, to skeletonize the insole by removingthe central portion of its forepart.

The present invention, in one aspect, provides a further improved methodof making shoes having flexible foreparts in accordance with which,after the marginal portion of a shoe upper has been secured in lastedposition over the forepart of an insole on a last, the overlastedportion of the upper is trimmed and, simultaneously with this trimmingoperation, a cut is made through the full thickness of the insole fromone side to the other thereof in line with the trimmed edge of theupper, thereby separating the central portion of the insole from themarginal portion to which the upper is secured. Preferably the cuttingof the insole is accomplished by means of an upper trimming tool which,as herein shown, is a reciprocatory knife adapted to cut with a choppingaction progressively along the marginal portion of the shoe bottom toperform a combined upper trimming and insole cutting operation as theshoe is moved past the knife. As illustrated herein a thin reinforcingpiece temporarily secured to the marginal portion of the insole at theside which is to be of the forepart of the insole, thereby separatingthe central portion of the latter from the adjacent marginal portion,the central portion of the insole is separated from the shank portion ofthe insole by means of a cut extending across the insole in the vicinityof the break line, after which the entirely separated central portion isremoved from the rest of the insole and discarded. Thereafter an outsoleis attached, the latter preferably having first had its marginal portionreduced so as to provide a central pro jection adapted to fit Within theopening formed in the forepart of the insole by the removal of thecentral portion therefrom. Finally the last is pulled and the thinreinforcing piece is removed from the inside of the shoe.

The invention will be explained with reference to the accompanyingdrawings, in which Fig. 1 is aperspe'ctive view of an insole as preparedfor use in the practice of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a sectional View taken along the line II-II of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a lasted shoe embodying an insole ofthe type shown in Fig. 1, this view illustrating the performance of thecombined upper trimming and insole cutting operation as practiced inaccordance with the present invention;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the shoe as it appears at the completionof the operation illustrated in Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary perspective view of the shoe illustrating afurther step in the present method;

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary sectional view taken substantially along theline VI--VI of Fig. 5;

Fig. '7 is a fragmentary perspective view of an outsole adapted forapplication to the shoe shown in Figs. 4 and 5;

Fig. 8 is a cross-sectional view of the shoe as it appears after theoutsole has been attached;

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view of a shoe made inaccordance with the present invention but having an outsole of adifferent type attached thereto;

Fig. 10 is a perspective view of an insole prepared in a differentmanner from that illustrated by Fig. 1 for use in thepractice of thepresent invention;

Fig. 11 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line X[X[ of Fig. 10;and

Fig. 12 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view of a shoe embodying aninsole of the type shown in Fig, 10 and illustrating the combined uppertrimming and insole cutting operation as practiced upon a shoe havingthis modified type of insole.

In carrying out my improved method of making shoes having flexibleforeparts in which the central portions of the foreparts are removedafter the shoes have been lasted, I may use an insole such as thatdisclosed in United States Letters Patent No. 2,017,856, granted October22, 1935, upon application of George Goddu. An insole of this type isshown at iii in Figs. 1 to 5 of the drawings, the insole having a widefeather 18 of reduced thickness and an integral marginal lip 20 of lesswidth than the feather, the lip extending inwardly and lyingsubstantially flat I against the surface of the insole. For a purposehereinafter to be described I prefer to secure to the unlipped side ofthe forepart of the insole,

before the insole is applied to the last, a thin.

reinforcing piece 22 of sheet material, for example, soft upper leather,this piece of sheet material having a contour corresponding to that ofthe forepart'of the insole and being of a size to underlie the innerextremity of the feather but not necessarily extending to the edge ofthe insole. Conveniently, the piece 22 may be secured to the insole by amarginal stripe of cement, such as that indicated at 24 in Fig. 2. Afterthe insole has been temporarily secured in place upon the bottom of alast, such as the last 26, a shoe upper 28 is worked over the last andits marginal portion secured in overlasted relation to the insole inaccordance with the method of lasting disclosed in the application abovereferred to. Briefly described, this method consists in applying cementto the marginal surfaces of the upper and the feather of the insole,working portions of the upper over the feather and against the shoulderbetween the feather and the lip, raising portions of the lip, andinserting metallic fastenings, such as the staples '30, throughthe'upper and the lip to hold the upper in place until the cement hasset. The upper having been lasted as described, a shank stiffener 32 maybe attached to the shoe botto in accordance with the usual practice.

After the upper has become fatigued or set in overlasted position Iproceed, in accordance with my present invention, as herein illustrated,to trim' theoverlasted margin of the upper and simultaneously toseparate the central portion of the insole, together with the lip, fromthe adjacent marginal portion of the insole. Advantageously, thiscombined trimming and separating operation may be performed, asillustrated in Fig. 3, by means of a chisel-like chopping knife 34arranged to be reciprocated (by an eccentric or other suitable means notshown) in an inclined guideway 35 formed within a knife support 38having a free lower extremity shaped to enter the angular channel formedby those portions of the upper which overlie the feather and theupstanding lip of the insole. As shown, the lower'extremity of the knifesupport 36 is such as to provide angularly disposed gage faces 33 and 40adapted to engage, respectively, the portion of the upper which issecured to the feather l8 and the portion of the upper which is securedto the lip 20 and thus to position the shoe relatively to the knife 34so that the latter will cut at an angle to the face of the insole, asduring the reciprocation of the knife, the cutting edge at its lowerextremity is projected beyond the gage face 38. During the cuttingoperation of the knife 34 the shoe may be moved manually past the knife.As shown, a guide finger 42 having a lower extremity shaped to engagewithin the angle formed between the inner face of the lip 29 and theadjacent face of the insole may advantageously be employed to guide theshoe so that the combined trimming and cutting operation will progressaround the forepart of the shoe bottom. The length of the knife strokeshould be adjusted so that the knife will cut through the upper andthrough the insole from one side to the other, i. e., entirely throughthe thickness of the insole so as to separate a central portion of fullinsole thickness from a surrounding marginal portion of the insole.Preferably, also, the knife will be so adjusted that it will cutslightly beyond the inner surface of the insole so as to insure cleancutting and the complete severance of the central portion of the insolefrom the adjacent marginal portion thereof. If a piece of sheet materialsuch as the piece 22 has been previously attached to the unlipped faceof the insole the cutting edge of the knife will enter this materialinstead of cutting into the bottom of the last and thus mutilation ofthe last bottom will be avoided. In case such a piece of sheet materialis not employed between the insole and the last the length of knifestroke may be adjusted-so that the knife will cut through the insolewithout, however, penetrating at least to any substantial extent intothe bottom of the last. By reference to Fig. 3 it will be seen thatthe'knife will enter the upper at the base of the upturned portion whichis stapled to the lip 20 and will cut through the upper and through theinsole just outside of the lip so as to provide a beveled edge upon thatportion of the upper which overlies the feather and also an edge beveledat the same angle upon the margin of the insole which is separated fromthe rest of the insole by the cutting operation.

It is "contemplated that the combined upper trimming and insole cuttingoperations above described will begin at one side of the shoe bottomsubstantially at the break line, for example, at the point 46 in Fig. 4,and continue forwardly around the toe and then rearwardly to the breakline 'at the opposite side of the shoe bottom. The central portion ofthe insole together with the portion of the lip 20 which is attachedthereto is thus severed from the margin of the insole as alreadydescribed but it remains integral with the shank portion of the insole.The next step is to separate the central portion of the forepart of theinsole from theshank portion thereof and this may be accomplished bydrawing a knife across the sole substantially at the break line, asillustrated in Fig. 5, wherein a hand knife 48 is shown in the act ofmaking the break line out. The central portion 50 of the forepart of theinsole, together with the forepart portion of the lip 20 and the remnantof the upper which is attached to that portion of the lip, is thuscompletely separated from the rest of the insole. The portion 50 is thenremoved and discarded. Thus, not only has the overlasted margin of theupper in the forepart of the shoe been trimmed but, by the operation ofthe trimming tool, the insole has been skeletonized by the formationtherein of a central opening 52, the wall of the opening (or, in otherwords, the inner edge of the adjacent marginal portion 54 of the sole)being beveled as is also the adjacent trimmed edge of the upper. Theappearance of the beveled edges of the upper and the margin of theinsole is best shown in Fig. 6. The shoe is now ready to receive anoutsole.

It will be noted: that the reinforcing piece 22, evenv thoughpartially.- cut through in places by theaction of the trimming/knife,serves tohold.

themarginal portion 541 oi the insole in shape.

after the trimming until the outsole has been laidv with-v cement.

The outsole 56 may be prepared as shown in Fig. 7 by having its marginand shank portion reduced so as to form in the central portion of itsforepart a projecting portion 58 the edges of which are beveled at anangle substantially com- 'plemental to that of the beveled edges of themargin of the sole and the attached margin of the upper. Fig. 8 showsthe appearance of the shoe after an outsole having its margin thusreduced has been secured thereto by means of cement. After the last hasbeen pulled the reinforcing piece 22 will be removed and discarded.Alternatively an unreduced outsole 560 may be employed and the spacewithin the rim of the skeletonized insole and the trimmed edge of theupper in the forepart of the shoe filled by suitable filling material,as indicated at 60 in Fig. 9.

While the invention has been described above in its relation to methodsof making shoes in the practice of which the overlasted margin of a shoeupper is temporarily secured to a lasting lip on the insole, it is notessential that the upper be secured to a lasting lip and if desired aninsole having no such lip may be employed, as indicated in Figs. 10 to12, inclusive. In using the insole having no lasting lip the upper maybe lasted with cement to the margin of the insole and held in placeprior to the setting of cement by means of fastenings, for example,curved staples which do not extend entirely through the material of theinsole and which may be removed after the cement has set, such a methodof lasting being disclosed in United States Letters Patent No.1,932,544, granted October 31, 1933, upon application of George Goddu.If desired, the staples may be permitted to remain, in which case itwill be unnecessary to use cement. When employing an insole having nolasting lip it is advantageous to form a shallow channel in that face ofthe sole over which the upper is to be lasted, as shown for example at62 in Figs. 10, 11 and 12, the channel being spaced inwardly apredetermined distance from the edge of the sole and being employedmerely for the purpose of receiving the guiding finger 42 or someequivalent guiding device so that the latter may-function in guiding theshoe as the shoe is moved past the trimming knife so that the trimmingcut and the opening in the insole will be at the desired distance fromthe edge of the shoe bottom. If desired, however, satisfactory resultsmay be secured by guiding the shoe from the edge of the shoe bottomeither by the eye of the operator or by the use of a suitable edgeguide. Although the protective piece 22 has not been shown in Figs. 10to 12 as being applied to the insole, such a piece may be employed, ifdesired, in which case it will function, as already described, to permitthe trimming knife to cut slightly beyond the inner surface of theinsole without cutting into the bottom of the last. In these figures theshoe upper is shown with its marginal portion secured by means of curvedstaples, one of which is shown at 64, to the margin of the insole andthe trim gming knife 34 is shown as performing its combined uppertrimming and insole cutting operation.

Having described my invention, What I claim new'and -desire to secure 1by Letters Patent of the- Uni-ted- States is:

1; That. improvement in methods of making shoes which consists: inassembling an upper and anwin's'ole on a last with a piece of sheetmaterial; interposed between the insole and the bottom of the last,cutting inwardly through the overlasted marginal portion of the upperand through the full thickness of the insole and part way into saidpiece of sheet material, thereby trimming the upper and separatingmaterial from the central portion of the insole without cutting thelast, attaching an outsole to the shoe, and removing the last and saidpiece of sheet material rom the shoe.

2. That improvement in methods of making.

shoes which consists in assembling on a last an upper and an insolehaving a feather and a marginal lasting lip, working the upper over thelast and securing its marginal portion to said feather and said lip,trimming the overlasted margin of the upper and, by the same operation,cutting inwardly through the feather of the insole, thereby separatingmaterial including said lipfrom the central portion of the forepart ofthe insole, and attaching an outsole to the shoe.

3. That improvement in methods of making shoes which consists inassembling on a last an upper and an insole having a marginal lastinglip, working the upper over the last and securing the marginal portionof the upper to said lip by means of staples, trimming the upper at thebase of the lip and cutting inwardly through the insole from one side tothe other with the trimming tool, thereby separating material includingsaid lip from the central portion of the forepart 01f1 the insole, andattaching an outsole to the s e.

4. That improvement in methods of making shoes which comprisesassembling on a last an upper and an insole having an upturned marginallasting lip, working the upper over the last and securing its marginalportion to said lip by means of a line of staples, feeding the shoe pasta trimming tool while guiding the shoe by engagement within the anglebetween the inner side of said lip and the adjacent surface of theinsole, operating said trimming tool to cut through the overlastedmargin of the upper and through the insole from its outer surface to itsinner surface outside said line of staples, thereby trimming off themargin of the upper, and separating material including saidlip from thecentral portion of the forepart of the insole.

5. That improvement in methods of making shoes which consists inassembling an upper and an insole on a last with a piece of sheetmaterial interposed between the insole and the bottom of the last,cutting inwardly through the overlasted marginal portion of the upperand through the insole from its outer surface to its inner surface andpart way into said piece of sheet material thereby trimming the upperand skeletonizing the insole withoutcutting the last, providing anoutsole having at its attaching side a projection complemental to theopening in the skeletonized insole, securing said outsole to the shoewith said projection fitting within said insole opening, and removingthe last and. said piece of sheet material from the shoe.

6. That improvement in methods of making shoes which consists inassembling on a last an upper and an insole having a feather and 2.marginal lasting lip, working the upper over the last and securing itsmarginal portion to said feather and said lip, trimming the overlastedmargin of the upper and, by the same operation, cutting inwardly throughthe feather of the insole thereby separating material including said lipfrom the central portion of the forepart of the insole so as to form anopening therein, forming upon an outsole a central forepart projectioncomplemental to the opening in the insole, and attaching said outsole tothe shoe with said outsole projection interfitting within said insoleopening.

AXEL EMIL LINDBLAD.

